On the second day of the IPL auction, the Mumbai-Rajasthan tussle with a player surprised everyone. In the end, Mumbai Indians bought England fast bowler Zafra Archer for Rs 6 crore. He has just recovered from an elbow injury and will not be able to play in the IPL this year, yet why did Mumbai spend Rs 6 crore on Archer! The IPL authorities also said that if Archer could not play at all, no one could be taken as his replacement. There is enough curiosity about the matter.
Former India left-arm pacer Zaheer Khan is serving as Mumbai’s director of operations. He told a news conference after the auction on Saturday that Archer had been hired at a cost of Rs 6 crore to fulfill the dream of Mumbai Indians owner Akash Ambani. He wants Yashpreet Bumra and Zafra Archer to play together. Although Archer will not be able to play in the IPL this time, but in the next IPL we will witness the terrible pairing of Archer-Boomera.
Archer has won the 2019 World Cup for England. One of the fastest bowlers of all time, however, always lives with injuries. After the T20 series against India in 2021, he could not return to the field due to an elbow injury. He has been undergoing surgery recently and is trying to recover from the injury.
Akash, however, is giving all the credit to Mumbai coach Mahela Jayawardene for taking Archer to the team. Archer made his professional cricket debut under Jayawardene. Archer has been taken to his liking. So we’re glad to have the two of them back together. Although Archer’s pairing with Boomerang will not be seen this year, we are happy to have this awesome pairing. We have timeless mills, he’s great in the last over. He also played 100-ball cricket under Mahela. He is safe at the moment.
Archer’s base price at the auction was Rs 2 crore. I was told not to play this season. The Rajasthan Royals were the first to bid for the star fast bowler. Archer played for Rajasthan last season in the IPL. He was released before the auction. However, Mumbai seemed to be aiming to get Archer. Sunrisers Hyderabad, however, tried to find an English fast bowler in the middle. But Mumbai impressed everyone and bought Archer.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has also informed all IPL franchises about Archer, saying he will not be able to play this season. The ECB had earlier informed the BCCI about the matter. However, the ECB has allowed Archer to play in the IPL in 2023. The condition was to take Archer at their own risk. He will not be able to get a replacement in the middle of the tournament. Mumbai has finally taken the risk.